Chapter 451 Everything is Fate
After leaving the palace, Yun Chen rushed to Prime Minister Wu's residence without stopping.
She was still wearing the official uniform she wore to the night banquet, which had seven or eight holes in it. Through the broken silk threads, faint traces of blood could be seen from the shallow wounds.
He was neat and tidy when he left, but came back with messy hair and wounds on his body.
Everyone in the mansion was frightened by Yun Chen's appearance. They all gathered around him and asked questions in surprise. Those who brought basins of water and medicine started to get busy under Lan Qian's anxious command.
Yun Chen didn't bother to explain or stay. He just patted Lan Qian's shoulder comfortingly, then rushed into the dormitory and found the tiger-shaped military token that he had almost never used.
She clutched the military token in her hand and hurried out again. Lan Qian and everyone in the mansion chased after her:
"Miss, wait a minute. No matter how serious the matter is, you have to heal your wounds before leaving. What is more important than your health? Miss--"
Yun Chen turned a deaf ear to him, turned over, mounted the Cloud-Swallowing Beast, and was about to ride out.
After running two steps, she hurriedly reined in her horse and turned back, pulling Lan Qian and the housekeeper aside, and whispered to them quickly:
"Listen, immediately gather everyone in the mansion: guards, servants, cooks, grooms... Gather everyone, open the treasury, distribute silver to everyone, return everyone's indentures to their respective owners, and then leave here as quickly as possible, ahem..."
Because he ran too fast, Yun Chen was a little out of breath while speaking and couldn't help coughing a few times.
Lan Qian and the steward were so shocked that their mouths dropped open. It took them a while to react.
"What do you mean? Are you going to dismiss everyone in the mansion? Why? What happened?"
Yun Chen had no time to explain. She was worried about Yun Liancheng and Hua Shi being held hostage in the palace, their lives in danger.
He was also worried that if he delayed handing over the military power too late, Nanli Jun would change his mind and not pardon Huo Gannian. Rong Yi, Duan Jie, and their clansmen would also miss this only chance to survive.
Besides, the matter was too complicated and Yun Chen didn't know where to start.
Her only thought was to do her best to save the lives of everyone in the mansion while the matter had just begun and Nan Lijun had not yet ordered the entire Prime Minister Wu's mansion to be implicated.
After handing over the military power, whether they are killed or punished, at least they will not be implicated.
Lan Qian and the housekeeper could not guess or imagine what had happened. They could only sense that something was wrong from the scars on Yun Chen's body and his anxious yet forced calm look. They immediately understood Yun Chen's intentions.
Lan Qian swallowed a bunch of questions, nodded heavily with red eyes, and choked up:
"Don't worry, Miss, I will definitely do it!"
This kind consideration comforted Yun Chen a little. She smiled at Lan Qian and wiped away the tears from her eyes.
"Don't cry, and tell everyone in the mansion not to be afraid. We originally thought that our whole family could live together in our old age, but now it seems that's not possible. So, let's assume that everyone lives to be a hundred years old, and pay out the remaining decades of wages five times the amount."
As he spoke, Yun Chen quickly pinched Lan Qian's face and said in a deliberately joking tone:
"There are two large boxes under my bed that I haven't had time to move to the warehouse. They contain the dowry I bought for you. I originally wanted to give you a surprise in the future, but I'll give it to you now."
After saying this, regardless of Lan Qian's tears rolling down her cheeks, Yun Chen mounted his horse again and left. In the blink of an eye, his figure disappeared at the gate of the mansion.
Yun Chen believed that Lan Qian, who was so sensible, would be able to quickly arrange for everyone in the house.
Without this worry, Yun Chen flew the Cloud-Swallowing Beast and headed straight for the Regent's Palace.
When this was still the Huo Mansion, she was just a small personal guard.
Now, the Huo Mansion has become the Regent's Mansion, and her personal guard has become Prime Minister Wu.
But I didn’t expect that the more brilliant the flowers are, the closer they are to death.
She rushed into the mansion and Lu Liang came up to her and led the horse.
Seeing her appearance, Lu Liang was surprised, but the first thing he asked was not "What happened? How did you get hurt?" but:
"What do you want?"
"Looking for the military token!" Yun Chen said this and rushed into Qiyunju to search.
She was much more familiar with this place than her own mansion, and she quickly found the lion-shaped military token from the secret compartment in Huo Gannian's study where he always kept confidential things.
With the two military tokens in hand, the next step was to notify Su Zhengyang to quickly go to the camps of the Lion Power Army and the Tiger Power Army to hand over the military power.
Yun Chen was calculating the round trip time in her mind, and estimated that it would take about two hours, and she would be able to go back to the palace to pick up Yun Liancheng and Zhu.
She walked out quickly, but when she was about to leave Qiyunju, Lu Liang stopped her.
He stood in front of the door, his arms outstretched as if to block it, frowning and asking:
"What do you want?"
Yun Chen thought that Lu Liang was a new personal guard and was not familiar with her and Huo Gannian's affairs, so he said, "A Nian has always told me where to put the military token. Don't worry, I'm using it for business."
But then she thought, although Lu Liang was a new official, he used to be the first in the Huo Gang's Feifu title examination and had been in the Huo Gang for many years. How could he not know the relationship between her and Huo Gannian?
She couldn't help wondering:
"Lu Liang, why are you stopping me?"
Lu Liang glanced at the two military tokens tightly clenched in her hands and said firmly:
"Please tell me clearly what you want to do with this military token, and then I will let you go!"
Yun Chen was originally so anxious that he was sweating all over, but now he almost laughed out of anger. He even felt that Lu Liang's cautious attitude was quite similar to Ye Yan.
She calmed herself down and explained briefly:
"There's been a major incident in the palace. Ah Nian killed King Xi Yan, and the Emperor has detained all of us on charges of rebellion. He wants me to hand over the military power of the Lion and Tiger Armies before everything can be pacified."
Thinking that he had explained it clearly and concisely, Yun Chen was about to continue walking out.
But Lu Liang still stood firmly at the door and asked a question that was beyond Yun Chen's expectation:
"Then why don't you protest?"
Yun Chen opened his eyes wide and stared at Lu Liang, who said again with a firm expression:
"You now command an army of 500,000 men, and no force in the entire Nan Kingdom can challenge you. Why would you obediently surrender your military power? Aren't you afraid that if you take one step back, you'll be set back again? The Emperor will change his mind and punish you. Countless 'coercion' and 'conspiracies' await you in the future. Why don't you just lead your troops in rebellion and experience eternal peace without any worries?"
Yun Chen took a step back, looked at Lu Liang for a while as if he were a stranger, frowned and said:
"What crazy things are you talking about?"
"I'm not crazy." Lu Liang stared into Yun Chen's eyes. "Have you ever thought that if the young master was here at this moment, he would not choose to hand over the military power, but would directly lead the mighty lion and tiger army to attack the palace? Maybe the young master wants to rebel?"
Lu Liang thought that after saying this, Yun Chen would stop and think carefully.
However, Yun Chen was extremely firm and trusting, and said without hesitation:
"A Nian doesn't know."
After a pause, she continued, "Even if Ah Nian really wanted to rebel, he would definitely tell me and let me know first."
After saying that, no matter how Lu Liang tried to stop him or talk to him, Yun Chen pushed him away and jumped on the horse.
But Lu Liang still refused to give up. He chased out of Qiyunju and continued to ask questions:
"The Emperor has treated you and the Young Master so well! Why do you still remain so loyal? People say, 'If a father is unkind, his son will flee to another land; if a ruler is unjust, his minister will defect to another country!' Your loyalty to the Emperor now is just foolish!"
Yun Chen didn't want to argue with Lu Liang about explanations, but then Lu Liang said, "You are also a person who has 'escaped from a foreign land'! You know anger and resistance! Why can't you do it now? How far will it take for you to give up this blind loyalty?" This stopped Yun Chen's steps again.
She slowly stopped her horse and looked up at the distant sky. The direction where the clouds were the most brilliant was Youzhou.
"Yes. When I was young, I thought my father was unkind, and I decided to flee. I naturally knew anger and resistance. But later, time and reality taught me that sometimes, what you think isn't necessarily the truth."
Yun Chen reined in his horse and turned around, looking straight into Lu Liang's eyes:
"The Emperor may be wary of me, exploiting me, deceiving me, or betraying me. Regardless of whether she intends to do so, or is manipulated by others, swayed by some conspiracy I don't know about. Even if she truly hates me and wants to kill me, so what? It's not like she hates all the people in the world. I know the Emperor is not a supreme ruler. In your eyes, she is mediocre, jealous, selfish, and sometimes cowardly, with many flaws..."
Yet, even when Luojiang and the Black Scale Cavalry attacked, she never gave up a single blow, remaining steadfast and refusing to yield an inch, fighting again and again despite repeated defeats. It was enough for her to protect her throne, prevent chaos from raging, and safeguard her kingdom and her people.
Lu Liang was stunned. Yun Chen was probably the only person in the world who could speak well of Nan Lijun's strengths.
He moved his mouth, wanting to explain, but suddenly he didn't know what to say.
Yun Chen said again:
"If everyone is selfish, using 'loyalty' as a bargaining chip to blackmail the emperor, today you might be dissatisfied with the new policies and want to rebel, tomorrow he might be dissatisfied with the results of a certain policy and rebel, the day after tomorrow someone might feel resentful because their family interests are infringed, and the day after that even disliking the emperor's clothes and appearance could be used as an excuse...
If we hold the Emperor to the standard of the gods, and rebel at the slightest dissatisfaction, how can there ever be peace in the world? Throughout history, even the most virtuous and wise rulers have their flaws, don't they? In my opinion, as long as the Emperor treats his people kindly, refrains from slaughter and tyranny, and the Nan Kingdom is at peace and the people live and work in peace, then my bottom line will never be crossed."
After saying this, Yun Chen turned around again.
Seeing Lu Liang standing there straight, with a frown on his face, looking confused and puzzled, as if he couldn't understand what she had just said, Yun Chen sighed softly and said word by word in the most straightforward and plain language:
"Lu Liang, 'anger and resistance' are both fine. But the question is, is this 'resistance' for the sake of establishing a destiny for the people of the world and bringing peace to the world, or is it simply for my own power-hungry pursuit of the throne? There's a world of difference between the two. Everyone says I, Yun Chen, am loyal to the emperor, but they don't know that the world belongs to the people. My loyalty is to the millions of innocent lives that yearn for peace and stability behind the throne. Do you understand?"
After saying this, without caring whether Lu Liang understood or not, Yun Chen put the two military tokens tightly in his arms and rushed to the palace at lightning speed.
Her movements were as sharp as usual, and her persistence was almost resolute.
Behind her, Lu Liang was already so shocked by these words that his whole body was numb.
As long as Nan Lijun is not a tyrant and does not massacre the people, Yun Chen can accept her no matter how despicable or disgusting she is?
Even if she wants to rebel one day, it must be for the people, not for her own power?
Now that the war has finally subsided and the world is at peace, Yun Chen will protect whatever the people desire.
Peace, always peace.
Lu Liang took deep breaths repeatedly. He was amazed at Yun Chen's impeccable logic. He was surprised that she could always stand above everyone's heads and look down on all living beings with the broadest vision and the most sincere compassion.
He was also extremely frustrated.
He knew that Yun Chen's path, which was completely opposite to Huo Gan Nian's, might be destined for them to...
Lu Liang stood there with his shoulders drooped in silence for a long time.
"It's the only chance, the only one... It would be great if we didn't miss it..."
Sharing the same sentiment as Lu Liang, there was also a lush banyan tree not far away—
The two thin figures had been hiding there quietly, without being noticed by anyone in the Regent's Palace.
Buyan looked at Yun Chen's gradually receding back, and his heart was also extremely complicated.
After being brothers for so many years, he knew Yun Chen too well and could guess her decision without even thinking.
But I was still moved by her sincere words - by her unique and brilliant heart.
For a moment, he, like Lu Liang, hoped to hear Yun Chen say:
"Fuck it, never mind! I'm going to rebel!"
He didn't understand why he had such thoughts.
Perhaps it was because, although he promised to protect Nan Lijun, he always felt that Yun Chen was more important in his heart.
Perhaps, it was because he knew Huo Gannian too well, and knew that the young master he had loyally served for more than ten years was a man of hidden and treacherous character, like the deep sea, and would never be defeated so easily.
Unfortunately, this fantasy will never come true.
The word "betrayal" has never been in Yun Chen's life.
She was told to disregard the lives of Huo Gannian, Duan Jie, and the others in the prison, disregard the safety of Yun Wang's wife and children, and lead her army into the palace, starting a battle right before the eyes of the people of Kyoto, pointing her swords at the imperial guards, slaughtering her own compatriots, and storming the Golden Palace to pull Nan Lijun off the throne...
Anyone who knows Yun Chen will know that this is something that will never happen even if the sky falls and the earth breaks.
"So, at this moment, everything has already been decided for this person. Military power will definitely be handed over, and it must only be Yun Chen who can hand it over."
Xiaoze stood beside Buyan and sighed softly.
Seeing Bu Yan's conflicting emotions, Xiao Ze said in a joking tone:
"How about we stop spectating and join the upcoming brawl? Haha..."
Buyan shook his head.
Xiao Ze sighed, his thoughts going back to the night many years ago when he abducted Yun Chen from the Huo Mansion to the palace.
"In the past, the late emperor once asked Yun Chen what she would do if Jiang Ming wanted to kill the emperor? And what would she do if she were asked to kill Jiang Ming? She gave the most beautiful answer in the world. Now, it seems that even after so many years, the answer has never changed. It doesn't matter who replaces Jiang Ming."
"The suspicious won't give up, the conspirators and the ambitious won't retreat, and Yun Chen will always be Yun Chen. You and I can only be bystanders, trying our best to be the last defender of the Emperor when the final moment comes. Alas, everything is determined by fate, and we have no control over it..."
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